Meet Microsoft's Upgraded Surface Tablets
Posted: September 24, 2013 by Emily Brown
Microsoft officially unveiled the 2nd generation of their Windows 8 tablets, the Surface 2 and the Surface Pro 2, at a tech event Monday in Manhattan.
Having fixed almost everything consumers didn't like about their first tablets, here is an overview of what's new in Microsoft's upgraded Surface tablets.
Surface 2
Even though not named after its ancestor, the Surface 2 is the second generation of the Surface RT.
In many aspects similar to its predecessor, Surface pro is a faster and better (the NVIDIA Tegra 4 chip has improved speed and graphical performance) ARM-based tablet that supports attachable keyboards. Built to make Windows 8(.1) sing, the device has improved battery life by 25%, better cameras and higher display resolutions than Surface RT. The improved cameras are said to support better low light settings, letting your Skype with your folks in dimmed rooms.
Aside from these improvements, Surface 2 has a completely new look, with a silver magnesium case that resists fingerprints, and is much sturdier. What's more, this fancy looking gadget is available for $449.
Surface Pro 2
Unlike the broad and various upgrades of the Surface 2, the changes applied to Surface Pro 2 are mainly targeted and vertical, i.e., everything is about battery life.
This means that the tech giant rejiggered each fragment of the unit in what is called today the Surface Pro 2, a device that is expected to have around 60% better battery life. And of course, this figure can be lowered in certain use cases. The good news is that Surface Pro 2 can contain up to 8 gigabytes of low-power DDR RAM, as well as a SSD that can reach the half-terabyte mark.
With similar looks to its predecessor, it comes in the same size and weight, but lasts longer and goes harder and faster if you kit it up properly. As for the price, it starts off at $899.
